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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. race — humankind
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. vault — a safe
  5. wound — an injury
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. track — a song
  8. wound — an injury
  9. race — the arms race
  10. last — final
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. race — a contest
  14. rash — hasty
  15. rash — a series
  16. pit — a hole
  17. pound — a weight
  18. track — a path
  19. pit — in a race
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. track — to keep track
  22. last — finally
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. last — to go on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com